The road to the Stanley Cup Finals just got much more difficult for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Initial Reports Say Penguins’ Staal Out For Season (VIDEO)
Quebec media outlet RDS is reporting that Staal underwent surgery to repair a severed tendon in his leg, "similar to the injury that kept Andrei Markov out for much of the season." If the reports are accurate, the loss of Staal creates a sizable void in the middle of the Penguins lineup.
Since Dan Bylsma took over as head coach of the Penguins last season, Staal, the centerpiece of Pittsburgh's' highly-effective third line, has been Bylsma's go-to guy for defensive matchups. Staal was effective during last season's playoffs as Bylsma matched his line against Alexander Ovechkin, Mike Richards and Henrik Zetterberg.
Nominated for the Selke Award this season as the league's best defensive forward, Staal has combined with Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy to form the most effective third line in the Eastern Conference. Bylsma will choose between Maxime Talbot and Craig Adams in replacing Staal, but neither can replace the penalty-killing maven and shut-down defender's effectiveness.
Here’s video of the incident, which took place in Game 1 against Montreal:
See More:
